What is changing in academic research? What has changed over the past decades and what might change in the coming ones? Could the research mission of universities be carried out in slightly or radically different ways in the medium term? This article aims to cast light on the trends and driving forces that can be observed in academic research over…

A discussion of trends in the structure of higher education since 1960 focuses on three modern imperatives: the demands for greater opportunity in the polity, for higher competence in each advanced economy marked by greater competition among nations, and for facilities for lifelong learning. (MSE)

Technological advancement, seen as the key to the economic status and fortune of the European nations, is at the heart of national debates over international industrial competition and the role of higher education in a wide variety of countries. (MSE)

The real issue in the vocalization or professionalization of higher education is not the enrollment distribution but the nature of the curricula offered, which should neither be determined solely by market forces nor leave the student without marketable skills. (MSE)

The principles and patterns of cooperation in higher education established among European countries should be reexamined now in light of the increased size and the political, economic, legal, and social ties of the European community. The issues to be considered include student and faculty mobility and the sharing of resources and expertise. (MSE)

State support for university research in 15 European countries is outlined, and recent trends analyzed. A demoralization in the European university research community is noted, and the need for stability of research funding is emphasized. (MSE)

Recent changes in the placement of teacher education within the structure of higher education in European countries, a result of reform movements, will have as its largest impact changes in the profession of teaching. The more qualified the teachers, the more they will behave like independent professionals. (MSE)

Argues that the Spanish educational system does not discriminate between men and women in access to administrative positions, and that women in Spain are neither interested in nor motivated to seek positions in educational administration because they do not identify with the traditional hierarchical model of administration. Organizational reforms…

Trends in vocational education and training (VET) within the European Union (EU) are examined from three viewpoints (education, geography, and industrial sociology) to determine whether policies have fostered the desired convergence of economies. Factors considered include pressures motivating VET reform, changes in national VET policies, and…

This article introduces four papers addressing problems of higher education in Czechoslovakia, Hungary, Poland, and Yugoslavia. Issues identified include overcoming the Communist heritage, the separation of teaching and research, low student numbers, appropriate diversification of higher education, increasing access, the role of the state, and…

This article identifies reasons for the crisis of Czechoslovak higher education including centralized administration, political screening of personnel, destruction of teachers' research and educational activities, and the perceived decreasing importance of higher education. Also considered is the new Higher Education Act of 1990 involving radical…

This article identifies the critical problems (economic, political, and social) facing the university system in Poland and argues that the university system can survive only by embracing such functions as forming values and ideas needed for democracy, fostering international and intranational links, and providing service functions. (DB)

This article gives a general historical perspective and framework for the discussion of higher education in post-1992 Europe. Universities are, by nature of their commitment to advancing universal knowledge, essentially international institutions, but they have been living in a world of nation states that have designs upon them. (MLW)

Three types of change in higher education resulting from the establishment of the European Community and related educational initiatives are examined: (1) those that are compulsory or unavoidable; (2) those that will be facilitated or encouraged; and (3) those for which the approach of 1992 represents an exceptional opportunity. (MSE)

The increase in student numbers, resulting adaptation of the curriculum, and changes in the profile of teacher-researchers in France from 1950 to 1980 suggest the need for changes in graduate study in the 1990s, including increased interdisciplinarity, development of discipline-based research centers, and improved industry-university cooperation.…